Jon McDonald's Page

Every morning I read the comics page in my local newspaper.  Occasionally I will see that a couple of the comic strips will have either the same theme or feature identical elements.  For example two of the comics today both were centered around toast or toasters.  I have seen this happen over and over.  Two writers seem to be channeling the same ideas at the same time when they are creating their strips.  I have witnessed this phenomena occur is other art forms as well - movies - plays -…

Okay, I'm finally getting it.  You want to be an author?  So you sit down and compose a masterpiece.  You find an enthusiastic publisher to get you out there, and then you sit back and collect the royalties.  Nope.  You've only done half your work.  Now the real work begins.  Whatever your publisher might do marketing your book - that is just not enough these days.  All the old models of selling books no longer apply.  What you really need to do is market yourself.  It is up to you,…

I've come to a curious place.  I'm not sure where to go with this blog.  I've covered a lot of the topics I wanted to cover in my experience with writing, and there is not a lot to report just now on the launch of the print version of my novel Divas Never Flinch.  I have completed the review of the print version and it is now back in the hands of my publisher.  They have their own mysteries about the procession of the next steps.  All I know for certain is that they will be ordering…

My, how the world of publishing is changing!  The print version of my novel Divas Never Flinch is about to come out.  I don't know about you, but I envisioned huge presses running at astronomical speeds slapping out a book, to then be bound, and the cover added.  I asked my publisher how many copies would be in the first run. I expected the publisher to have a warehouse filled with printed books to be sent out to bookstores all over the country when they were ordered.    I had to be…